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Posted By: Bill S. Where, in the Universe, are we? - 02/06/11 08:13 PM
In another thread I said I was trawling through my notes on the BB. The trouble with doing that is that it keeps throwing up more questions. Here's one of them.
Astronomers can see the same distance in every direction, so we have the right to regard ourselves as being at the centre of the detectably Universe.
However, experts, and to some extent logic, assure us that every other point in the Universe also has a right to see itself as being at the centre.
Does this mean that there is no point in the Universe from which it not possible to see an equal distance in every direction? If so, how could this be possible in a finite universe?
Posted By: Bill Re: Where, in the Universe, are we? - 02/07/11 12:40 AM
Bill S.
The reason that any place in the universe will give the appearance of being at the center is the shape of the universe. The usual analogy is a sphere. On a sphere you can travel in any direction in a straight line (a great circle) without ever reaching the 'end'. We aren't sure of the actual shape of the universe, but the same thing applies.

Bill Gill
Posted By: Bill S. Re: Where, in the Universe, are we? - 02/07/11 05:00 PM
In order to make the spherical analogy work spacetime would have to be sufficiently curved to result in a closed universe. My understanding is that this model is not "flavour of the month" in cosmological circles.

If our Universe is more-or-less flat, the situation must, surely, be different.
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